In which Alison is beset by evil spirits in the form of monkeeys, rickshaw dirvers, and stairs but manages to have some nice times anyway.

Hello Everyone!

I made it to Delhi, not without incident, but before I go into this post I want to say that I am totally fine, staying in a nice (if a bit pricey) hotel with a soft bed, TV, shower and room service. My mental state is pretty good, and (at least so far) Delhi seems better than Agra (though since Agra is right up there on my list of most awful places in the world, I'm not sure that's much).

After I blog posted the last time, Lisa and I met up for dinner. I wanted to go somewehre nice, away from the Taj Gank tourist ghetto where all you can find are bad Indian food and even worse "travellers" food like banana pancakes. We went to a place recommended in the guidebook, called Only, which was a little expensive, but amazing. We took a cycle rickshaw tog get there, whcih is my favorite way to get around. It's slow, but quiet and calm, and you can see everything going on without being assalted by it. The driver said that he would wait for us, and we wentinto the restaruant where a tabla player was slofty saranading the diners, the tables had white linen. It was a nice change, and the food was amazing! We ended up saying there for about two hours, just chatting and eating, enjoying the nice atmosphere and the music (which was a bit bizare once the tabla player was joined by a piano, which played selceions such as "Amazing Grace" and "Frere Jaque" for no apparent reason). After dinner, we split up, but I was really glad that I had met such a nice person to share some of this experience with.

When I got back to my hotel, some of the guests were in the restaurant watching an American movie on the TV, so I pulled up a chair and joined them. It was called "The Assignment" and was oneof those terrible secret agent thrillers, but the best part was it stared Donald Sutherland, looking especially creepy. During the comertials, we talked amoung ourselves about placed that we had seen, where we were heading and what we recommended. One Irish guy was headed to Varanasi, so I gave him some tips, the Romanians were coming from Delhi (which they also panned). After the movie finished, I headed to bed.

I got up way too early, after telling myself that I was to sleep in! I didn't have anything to do but have a long breakfast, and do a little early shopping which I don't want ot go into too much, except to tell about one store I ended up in, just to lok at the amazing marble inlay work that they did. The had all kinds of plates, glasses, and tables with floral dsigns shining on the walls. I got to chatting iwth the owner, and mentioned that i like some thing but they were 1) took expensiive and 2) not quite what I would have liked. "No problem," he said, "when do you leave?" I told him the next morning, and he said that if I did like something, they could make a disign custum for me. We sketched, negotiated, and I came away with what I felt was a pretty fair price. As I was leaving, he said "We will be working tonight, around 6pm. Would you ike to come and watch?" I said I would love to, and made a note to come back for that. Then, I headed out, got a rickshaw, and asked to be taken to the Agra Fort.

The guide offered me the usual deal, 10 rps per hour for a tour of the city, and i said that I would think about it. 15 minutes later, I was staring at Agra fort and thinking "Wow, I don't want to pay to see another building right now". I took a browse through a postcard book, wqasn't that impressed, and flaged my rickshaw guy again. "Let's try the baby Taj", I said, which is another Mughal tomb across the river. He took me there, making conversation on teh way (includingabout who I thought would win the American election), and he dropeed me off outside the gates. "Take your time!" he called out.

I went in, and was really impressed. The "Baby Taj" is actually the tomb of the Grand Wazir who was the grandfather of Mumtaz Mahal, the queen who inspired the Taj. It was desined by his daughter, who was also a queen and one of hte most powerful in Mughal history. It's made of white marble and inlay, though the shontes aren't as bright and it isn't nearly as large as the Taj. But it's in this lovely garden, backed up on teh river, full of birds and monkeeys. I spent about an hour just sitting and ejoying the quiet, watching the monkeys run upa nd down the paths. AS I was headed out, the whole pack of them started walking past me. "Oh, look how cute" said ALision the stupid touirist, and started taking video of them. Just as I was clicking hte camera off, one of hte males decided that I was WAY too close for comfort, and launched himself at my skirt. Before I knew what was happening, I had a monkey hanging off me, the safety pin I use ot make the skirt smaller had come lose so it was coming off, and i was screaming like a banchee and running toward the main gate. A whole crew of Indian tourists stopped to watch as I was screaming "oh, my God, get it off" and the poor monkey was now triple terrified, of me, my screaming, and falling off my skirt! Finally, he got loose and I ran strightinto the waiting arms ofa very sweet mother-aged woman who conforted me in Hindi-English. I calmed down pretty quickly (once I put my skrt back on) and saw that the monkey hadn't touched me at all. I was even able to laugh about it, but only when the monkeys were at a very safe distance.

After all that excitment, I decided it was time for lunch. I had my driver take me back to the Old City area around the main mosque, where my guidebook recommended a place for having great thali (thali is a set-meal with chipatii, rice, curries, dhal, curd and a sweet of some kind). This place did not disapoint! The curry was tastey, the rice had peices of panner and veggie in it, and for desert I was served the BEST gulab jamon I've ever had. It was hot, fresh, sweet, cakey, and totally amazing. After that, I wandered around the bazars which were really busy, and sold the usual household items and clothes without anything that was really intersting for me. I had sent my dirfver off (he had tried to tell me that htere was no restaurants "for me" around here, and I told him that i would find one) but he said to meet him by the fort when I was done. The fort was about a half hour walk away, and during that walk I was stared at, spoken too, and even grabbed at, and generally harrassed more than I had been in the whole 9 weeks I have been here. Agra is a pit, was my decision.

Still, it was nice to walk through the fort park, and wehn I met my driver again I agressed to the old "You go look at shops so they give me money" routine. I felt ;like I had really exhausted anything Agra had to offer, and so I didn't mind finishing the afternoon just riding around and seeing the expos. We went to a few places, and it was nice but nothing htat i saw was really ispring. At about 5:00, I got dropped back in front of my hotel and got a tea at a local rooftop with an amazing view of the sun setting one the Taj. When it was dark, I went back to my marble shop to see what was happening.

I learned that I was vastly underpaying them. IN every shop I'd been to that day, I'd heard "We do work right here, I am craftsman, everything is done by hand" but at this place you can actaully see it being done. It was completely incredible, like a live Mr. Rodger show, to watch them chip out the white marble under the design, then take the tiny peices of colored stone and place them (making adjustment if things aren't perfect) and glue them all by hand. I was there for three hours, and in that time I saw about half of the work being done. I also was served lots and lots of tea, and kabobs, and had a nice chat about America with the stonemasons. It was amzing, but I had to leave at nine to get back to teh htoel before they locked the door. I found the staff in the TV room watching Om Shanti Om, which is a very popular movie our right now thtat was being illegaly played on the local station. The plot was a biut confusing (I missed the begining) involving a love storyin which both of the lvoers were killed, but then he comes bakc somehow (unclear, reincarnation?) and gets revenge on their murderes. It was fun, escpecially the flashback to the lvoe story, because that was set in teh 1970's (and you havn't seen 70s hair till you've seen INDIAN 70s hair). The lovers were also film actors (and the murder was the director) so they spoofed a lot fo Indian movies that went over my head, but also 'Singing in the Rain" at several points, whcih I did appreciate! That ended late, and I went to bed much later than I thought.

Then next morning was super hetic. I had to get my train ticket (from the travel agent who was araging it, pickup my marble stuff, checkout of the hotel, and get breakfast by 9:00). The ticket guy was late, so tiwas 9:20 by the time I started out (my train was supposed to be 10). I got in a cycle rickshaw, who promised to get me to the station in time, but thne went back and siad that he couldn't and I had to take an auto. I was really mad (I had taken all my stuff and put it in his rickshaw already, and he had driven me to where his auto driver friend was waiting so there was no other transprot around) but I got in and got there in pleanty of time, though I refused to pay the 50 he asked for. When I walked into the station, I realized that my train wouldn't leave until 11 (it was late). Pissed and tired, I was walking down to my platform when, on the last step, I turned my ankle and fell flat on the pavement. I must have scared the two men who came running to help to death, because I Was in horrible pain, and then I felt ike I might faint, so I was screaming and crying and moving away from them so I could put ,my head between my legs and then just liein on the platform. Eventually, they got my calmed down, and I was placed on a bench with a steady stream of chai (the cure for every ill) and a host of concered citizens around. I was able to convicne them that I didn't need a doctor (I had a sprained ankle, the only thing a doctor would say was "Hmm...this is sprained. Better get the RICE going") and it didn't hurt too much by the time the train arrive (2 hours late). On the train, I napped with my feet elevated on my bag for most of the trip, thinking that things could have been a lot worse (This could have happened when I was just starting, I could have actualy broken my ankle and had to fly back to Dr. Roy, I could have hit my head or broken my luggage, ect). The only thing that was troubling was my trip to Armsitar. I baught tickets to leave early on the mroing of the 13th, and retrun to Dlehi early afternon the 15th, but I'll have to see how my ankle feels.

I found a hotel, and have been holed up with the TV basically ever since. I'm doing pretty much ok (wrose comes to wrose, where I am there is roomservice)( but I will try to get out and do something tomorrow, if only to see if I can. I may also breifly update just ot let you all know whether I'll be going or staying (my hotel can keep my luggage, so I don't ahve to worry about that at least).

I'd by lieing if I said that I wasn't counting down the days till I come home, but we'll see if Dlehi has anything to offer. See you all soon!